The present invention relates generally to chairs which may be stacked one atop another for storage and, more specifically, to a stackable chair with a back portion that flexes to improve the comfort of an occupant.
Stackable banquet chairs are well known in the prior art. They typically are designed to stack one atop another when not in use so as to reduce the necessary storage space. The chairs may have a padded seat cushion and a padded back support cushion. The back support is at an angle to the seat cushion and usually is essentially non-flexible.
Numerous attempts have been made to improve the comfort level of occupants using stackable banquet chairs. For example, there have been various attempts at providing stackable chairs with flexible backs. That is, there have been designs that allow the back support portion of the chair to flex with respect to the seat cushion, thereby allowing an occupant to slightly recline.
The present invention provides an improved stacking chair with a flexible back support. According to one preferred embodiment, the stackable chair has a base with a pair of inverted U-shaped leg members that each include a front leg portion, a rear leg portion, and a generally horizontal portion interconnecting the front and rear leg portions. The base also includes a generally horizontal seat cushion frame that extends between the U-shaped leg members and has a transverse front spring reinforcement bar extending side-to-side. A back support frame has a generally vertical portion with a upper and lower end, and a generally horizontal portion extending from the lower end. The generally horizontal portion includes a transverse rear spring reinforcement. A spring member has one interconnected with a front spring reinforcement bar, and another end interconnected with the rear spring reinforcement bar. The spring member supports the back support frame such that the back support frame has an unstressed position wherein the generally horizontal portion of the back support frame is generally co-planar with the seat cushion frame. The back support frame also has a reclined position, wherein the generally vertical portion of the back support frame is moved rearwardly and the generally horizontal portion of the back support frame is moved downwardly. The spring member biases the back support frame into the unstressed position. The seat cushion frame and the generally horizontal portion of the back support frame cooperate to support a seat cushion in a generally horizontal position.